Torslowe
Torslowe is a kingdom located north of Avylon. It is the oldest surviving human kingdom in the world, having stood for over 800 years. It was once a strong power aside the Avylonian Empire, and for a long period it was ruled by noble dynasties of kings. During the decades following the great Plague, Torslowe's king Friedrick Ruthven attempted to claim the status his lands had once held by turning to foul magic, which ended badly for both him and the rest of the known world. The region is largely avoided by traders and travelers due to its reputation as a haunted and cursed land filled with monsters and ghosts. History Torslowe is among the oldest kingdoms of the world, formed over 800 years ago during a time when creatures from the Elemental Planes were flooding into Panoulis and besieging humanity constantly. Since that time, Torslowe has been a reclusive but firm power which has acted as both friend and foe to its neighbors depending on the time period. It is quite unique from other human civilizations, likely due to the fact that it still retains whatever traces are left of the ancient World Nobles who blended with the human populace of the region after their defeat by the pre-historic Occrisian Empire. The most recent point of notable history for Torslowe occurred in the decades following the Plague, when the mad king Friedrick Ruthven became a vampire and forever altered the domain in his own image. He became the progenitor of the cursed beasts known as direkin and turned much of the kingdom's nobility into vampires. King Ruthven was supposedly defeated after half a century of terrorizing nearby regions by an alliance of heroes and soldiers from nearby lands, but the undead counts of Torslowe still reign over the haunted land and even in current times it remains a source of superstition and fear by those who still live in the old kingdom's shadow. Geography Torslowe is located north of Avylon. It is heavily forested, and most of its forests are primarily pine. Its proximity to the Stormshield Mountains gives it many steep rises and hills, especially near the edges of the kingdom. The southern part is more lightly wooded and small plains are dispersed throughout. The forests in and around the kingdom are often said to be haunted and filled with many strange monsters and wicked spirits. The weather is cold, with short and mild summers and long and harsh winters. Many marshes and creeks are dispersed through the kingdom, making travel off of roads treacherous. The sky is often overcast, with frequent rain. Wildlife Torslowe's wildlife consists mostly of deer and other common animals, though an unusual number of wolf packs haunt the region. It is known to be populated by ghosts and direkin left over from the many supernatural conflicts of the kingdom's past, and several rare species which have gone extinct throughout the rest of the world still roam the wilderness in Torslowe. The most notable form of wildlife in Torslowe is the great Erebian Wolf, known as one of the most dangerous animals in the known world. While these beasts have disappeared from the rest of the world, they still hold the isolated villages of Torslowe in constant fear, having a reputation as some of the most intelligent and ferocious animals in all of Panoulis. Economy Torslowe mostly relies on hunting and the trading of pelts, though imports and exports are largely nonexistent. While Torslowe once held great prestige throughout the world, it is now a backwards lands filled with superstitious peasants and monsters. Military Torslowe was once a very traditional military largely consisting of aristocratic knights. It was once the envy of the Old World, contesting even with the might of the Avylonian Empire, but its power has all but evaporated since the Plague. It has also long been the home of various barbarian tribes living in the mountains, who have traditionally been employed as mercenaries. Currently it has no standing military and can hardly be considered a kingdom anymore, and the title is retained solely for tradition's sake. Since the great Torslowan War the southern regions of the kingdom have maintained garrisons of soldiers from the various city-states to the south, but many of these have been driven out by the expanding ambitions of the Torslowan Counts. Government Torslowe has always been an aristocratic monarchy, with a king ruling from the capital, Castle Crowhaven, and various nobles ruling from the many lesser castles dispersed throughout the region. However, the monarchy evaporated after the death of Ruthven and the people now answer to the counts, a collection of nobility who have inherited the dark magics of King Friedrick as well as the curse of undeath. Other features The tombs of Arctis-Mon are located in Torslowe, inside the same mountain Castle Crowhaven is built on, where all the past kings and great warriors of the North are traditionally buried. Category:Avylon Category:Avylonian Kingdoms Category:Governments